TEPCO, Mitsubishi win Qatar thermal plant orderMay 27- Pan African News Agency
Tokyo Electric Power Co. and Mitsubishi Corp. announced Monday that they have won a contract to construct a large-scale thermal power plant in Qatar . The plant, with an output of about 2.4 million kilowatts, will be one of the largest thermal power plants in the Middle East . Japan’s environmental and energy-saving technologies are said to be highly evaluated by the Qatari side. There are now expectations that the deal may lead to an increase in infrastructure-related exports from Japan . TEPCO President Naomi Hirose and Mitsubishi President and Chief Executive Officer Ken Kobayashi concluded the contract with a Qatari government-affiliated electricity company and others in Qatar on Sunday. The plant will be constructed in the suburbs of the country’s capital Doha , and be a high-efficiency thermal power plant (see below) fired by Qatar’s natural gas. A water desalination plant that will use electricity generated at the plant also will be constructed adjacent to the facilities. Operation of the facilities is expected to start in 2017, and the total costs for the project are estimated at ¥300 billion, according to the sources. The Qatari government-affiliated electricity firm, TEPCO , Mitsubishi and other entities shortly will establish a joint venture tasked with constructing and operating the facilities. An intermediate special company formed jointly by TEPCO and Mitsubushi will own 30 percent of the joint venture. Hitachi Zosen Corp. also will take part in the construction of the facilities, the sources said. As the economy grows, there is a growing demand for electricity and fresh water in Qatar . Qatar will introduce Japan’s technologies as it hopes to reduce its environmental load and save natural gas, which is the country’s precious natural resource, for export. Qatar is one of the major exporters of liquefied natural gas to Japan . The Japanese side aims to make use of the recent acceptance of the order to strengthen the bilateral relationship with Qatar and stably secure the natural resource. To counter the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank , the Japanese government has issued a policy of supporting “quality infrastructure investment†in Asia in close cooperation with the private sector, such as a high-efficiency thermal power plant, an advanced water treatment system and a high-speed railway system. Ahead of the full liberalization of electricity retailing in 2016, respective power companies are making efforts to secure new sources of income. For example, TEPCO , which is operating a coal-fired thermal power plant in the Philippines together with Marubeni Corp. , decided to build a new unit at the plant in 2014, resuming its overseas businesses. In April, Chubu Power Electric Co. announced that it would join a project to construct a high-efficiency thermal power plant in Ohio . ■High-efficiency thermal power plant The term refers to a thermal power facility with efficient coal-fired or liquefied natural gas-fired systems. By reducing the use of fuels, the emission of carbon dioxide, a leading greenhouse gas, also can be reduced. Amid worsening environmental problems, such facilities are expected to be in greater demand worldwide.Speech http://www.energycentral.com/functional/news/news_detail.cfm?did=36287006 |